


to you, the boy i loved

by dumbochan



Category: GOT7, K-pop, Red Velvet (K-pop Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - To All the Boys I've Loved Before Fusion, Fake/Pretend Relationship, Multi, will update tags as i go on..., yes the au no one asked for but i wrote anyway
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-03
Updated: 2019-01-24
Packaged: 2019-09-06 14:55:50
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 17,078
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16834876
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dumbochan/pseuds/dumbochan
Summary: Seulgi wishes she could go back in time, that way she would be able to rip up all those love letters she’s written when her emotions got the best of her, and she was stuck at home crying over stupid crushes.Or alternatively, Yerim sends all of Seulgi's love confessions, and Seulgi finds herself in a fake relationship with Jaebum because of it.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> So... I read like one JB x Seulgi fic, and before I knew it, I was hooked, and then this happened... 
> 
> High school experiences definitely based off of American ones.
> 
> Also, follows the same plot of the movie/book "To All the Boys I've Loved Before", but I'm also improvising and making up my own events.

Seulgi wishes she could go back in time, that way she would be able to rip up all those love letters she’s written when her emotions got the best of her, and she was stuck at home crying over stupid crushes. She sure as hell wouldn’t be in this predicament now if she was able to change the past.

Yerim was only trying to do her best, as a caring younger sister who hated seeing Seulgi so alone. She also was tired of her sister being her new ride to school (she was a horrible driver, seriously how did she pass her drivers’ test) and she just wanted to hangout with her friends on the weekend instead of being stuck babysitting. If Seulgi had a boyfriend, Yeri would have a more reliable ride to school, and she would get her weekends back. It was supposed to be a win-win!

Seulgi knows that real life isn’t like the love stories you read, which is why those letters were never supposed to be sent out. It was just one of the many ways she put her feelings into words so she could carry on in life. But now the secrets out, and she just wants to run and hide.

She discovered the mishap when Sungjae came up to her before homeroom. It caught Seulgi off guard for sure when she saw the other blocking her locker. “Hi…” She greeted, holding her books tight to her chest.

“Seulgi! Just the person I wanted to see!”

“Why?”

“Look… I’m flattered, I really am, but you know I’m dating Sooyoung, right?”

Seulgi was confused, of course she knew that, the entire school knew. “Yes, I do… and I’m happy for you…?”

“I just don’t want your crush on me to develop more, because I’m just not interested.”

“My c-crush?” Seulgi flushed red immediately, “I haven’t had a crush on you since… grade seven!”

“Oh? When I received your letter, I thought it was more recent… that makes me feel a lot better.”

“My letter?” Seulgi questioned, and Sungjae nodded, fishing it out of his backpack and handing it to her. Seulgi snatched it out of his grip, panicking. “You weren’t supposed to receive this! I’m so sorry! Please, just forget you read this.”

“…Okay… I’ll see you around then.” Sungjae waved goodbye before turning to disappear down the hall.

Which led to now, Seulgi banging her head against her locker in the girl’s changing room before her physical education class. She’s trying to knock some sense into herself… maybe figure out how she can get her hands on any other letters that may have been sent. She’s only written four in her life. One to Sungjae back in grade seven…another to Taeyong after a summer of being in the same hip hop class (which she’s confident he didn’t receive… she smartly never put it into an envelope). There was another for her freshmen crush Jaebum, who’s also in a relationship, so she’s not too worried about that one. And then….shit. Bogeum. Park Bogeum is her older sister’s boyfriend, well _ex_ -boyfriend, and neighbor. It was the most recent of her love letters, and it was one she meant to destroy immediately after sealing it away in an envelope. She was having a hard time adjusting to the fact that Joohyun is now off to college on the other side of the country. She and Bogeum had been friends forever, since they were always neighbors, and right when she was about to confess that her feelings might be slightly more, he was confessing to Joohyun. They dated for a year, only breaking up because Joohyun was off to college while Bogeum was staying local to help out his parents. Seulgi was definitely worried now. She was content locking her feelings for Bogeum away, to save not only herself, but to save Joohyun. Joohyun wouldn’t be happy if she found out her younger sister has feelings for someone she still cares and is in love with. It would start a whole mess that Seulgi would rather avoid. She had to get that letter.

With new determination, she left the locker room to do laps around the track, hoping that the exercise will help blood flow and give her some ideas on how she could destroy the letter before Bogeum had a chance to read it and confront her about it.

As she ran around the track, she noticed Im Jaebum headed her way… great just what she needed. She and Jaebum weren’t as close as they used to be, that relationship growing stagnant the minute he started dating Nayeon and hanging out with her less. She sighed, and slowed down, giving Jaebum the opportunity to jog beside her. “What do you want, Im Jaebum?”

“I read your letter, thought we should talk about it.”

“There’s nothing to talk about, I don’t like you like that, and you shouldn’t have even received it.”

“But I did… so I think you should hear me out.” Jaebum explains, “I’m not really trying to jump into a relationship right now, not with my break up being so fresh.”

“Your break up?” Seulgi questioned, taking a second to spare a glance at him.

“Yeah? You didn’t hear? Nayeon and I broke up over the summer, she found someone else. Some guy in a band named Brian, and he goes to another school.”

“Oh… I’m… sorry to hear that. I know how much you liked her.”

“It’s whatever. It’ll take time to heal, which is why I’m going to have to reject your confession.”

“Trust me… that’s totally fine.” Seulgi assures, turning to look away. She spots Bogeum walking towards the direction of the track in her peripheral view, and she panics. He starts to wave, probably trying to flag her down, and she reacts by tackling Jaebum to the ground.

“What the—” Jaebum is cut off by the feel of Seulgi’s lips against his. He kisses back, before he could stop himself and Seulgi tries not to think about that. She waits for a second, glancing over to see Bogeum frowning and walking away. Good. She stops kissing Jaebum, pushing him away. “--the hell?! What was that about?”

“Nothing, don’t worry about it… I have to go now.” Seulgi states, getting to her feet and running away as fast as she can.

Her actions dawn on her the minute she’s changed out of her gym clothes and walking to her next class. She finds her best friend Seungwan standing outside her locker, and she pulls the girl into the nearest bathroom without words. “Uh? What’s going on?” Seungwan questions.

“Someone, probably Yerim, sent out all my love confessions, and it's coming to bite me in the ass.”

“What?!”

“Yes! First Sungjae, and then Jaebum, rejected me… and then I saw Bogeum, and he was trying to flag me down so I panicked and kissed Jaebum, and now I’m a mess.”

“Seul, slow down!”

“If Joohyun finds out, she’s going to kill me! Not to mention how will I ever talk to Bogeum or look him in the eyes! I don't even have a crush on him anymore, because I truly gave up on all my feelings when I saw how broken he and unnie were when she had to leave for university, and I feel horrible because I’m just going to make everything worse.”

“Seulgi!” Wendy calls out, grabbing her face to get her to stop talking, “It’s going to be fine. This will all blow over. You said you were rejected by Sungjae and by Jaebum, and Bogeum will probably just do the same. Seeing as you don’t have feelings for any of them anymore, it’s no big deal. It’ll all be okay.”

“But I’m not strong enough, Seungwan. Rejection is still rejection.”

“Yes, but that’s why you have me! We can movie marathon, eat junk food, and veg out. I’m here for you.”

“You’re right… thanks.” Seulgi smiles, pulling her best friend into a tight hug. Everything is going to be okay.

Her talk with Seungwan helped calm her down, but she still didn’t feel ready to deal with Bogeum. That being said, she was content eating lunch alone in the courtyard. At least she intended on eating alone… and then Jaebum came over, taking a seat on the table, while she was seated on the bench. He was smiling at her, and it concerned her. “Yes?”

“Aren’t you going to eat lunch with your friends?”

“I want just want to be alone today.” Seulgi admits, digging through her bag for her lunch. Her father made kimbap for Yerim’s lunch, and kindly packed the leftovers for her.

“Do you mind?” Jaebum questioned, pointing to a roll. Seulgi shook her head, offering him one and watching him eat it quickly, “So… I won’t keep you long, but I was thinking.”

“About?”

“Why did you kiss me earlier? Especially after making it clear that you don’t like me in such way?”

“If you must know… I was avoiding someone.”

“Another receiver of your love notes? How many did you write? I thought I was special for a moment.”

“Sorry to disappoint, but you were not the only letter, and it’s also none of your business who it was for.”

“Fine… but if that’s the case… maybe I can help you out.”

“What makes you think I need help?” Seulgi asks, holding her kimbap out for him to grab another piece. It wasn’t because she had a soft spot for Jaebum and their old friendship, it was because her dad had a lot of leftovers and she couldn’t possibly eat them all. Jaebum happily accepted more food.

“If you want to keep avoiding someone, I can help you. Pretend to be my girlfriend.”

“Did you hit your head earlier? You’re not making sense.”

“Surprisingly no, I didn’t hit my head when _you_ tackled _me_. Which, you also did not apologize for, but I’m willing to overlook that if you accept my offer.”

“Why do you need me to pretend to date you?”

“If people think we’re dating, whomever you’re hiding from will give up pursuit, and I also might be able to make Nayeon jealous.”

“So that’s what this is about.” Seulgi chuckles, “And here I thought you genuinely wanted to help me.”

“I do! It just so happens that this can also help me! It’s like you scratch my back, I scratch yours. Are you intrigued?” Jaebum questions, leaning back on his hands a bit. Seulgi watches him carefully. It’ll get Bogeum off her back for sure…and pretending for a little bit can’t hurt. Plus, it’ll make Yerim feel good if she’s the one who orchestrated all this.

“I’m intrigued.”

“Awesome!”

“We’re going to have to set some rules though… if we’re falling through with this plan,” Seulgi stated, pulling out her notebook and flipping to a clean page. “First rule…no kissing.”

“No kissing? If my memory serves me correctly, you were the one who kissed me first.”

“That was in a moment of panic! We’re not going through this again.”

“Fine.”

“Do you have any rules that you want to include?” Seulgi questions as she lists no kissing on the page.

“Skinship has to be a thing, I’ll honor our no kissing rule for _now_ , but we have to at least hold hands, you know, sell it.” Jaebum says, confiscating the notebook and crossing out ‘no kissing’, and replacing it with 'skinship but limited kissing', “And you’ll have to go to my games.”

“I know nothing about basketball.”

“You don’t have to know anything about basketball to be there. It’s a thing. Girlfriends all sit together and wear our jackets. It’s tradition.”

“Fine. You have to be my ride to and from school… and if you don't mind, my little sister’s ride to school, my dad picks her up after.”

“Sure, makes it easier and more believable anyway. We have to attend parties together…”

“Okay, but we’re not going to parties every weekend. I have movie nights on Saturdays with Yerim.” Seulgi jots down their rules, “And you have to help me with my art portfolio. I like doing portraits… and it’s easier if you have a model. I can only draw my sisters and Seungwan so many times.”

“Deal, and if we’re still together by the ski trip, we have to go together.”

“That’s five months away!”

“It's a precaution. I’m not missing out on the trip this year if I don’t have to.”

“Fine… I doubt we’ll still be dating by then anyway.”

“Same, I should be back with Nayeon by then.”

“Sign here please.” Seulgi demands after signing the bottom of the page. Jaebum scrawls his name quickly and hands the notebook back to Seulgi. “So… we’re now a couple.”

“Yeah, so… I’ll pick you up tomorrow morning, _babe_.” Jaebum winked, stealing her last kimbap before leaving her alone.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the first week of pretending goes...well.

The next morning, Seulgi felt like she was in a bizarre dream. She got dressed on autopilot, and tried her best to not have a crisis because she would now have to pretend to be someone’s girlfriend. To pretend to be _Jaebum’s_ girlfriend. 

After saying goodbye to their father, Junmyeon, Seulgi ushered Yerim outside and towards the curb. Her younger sister turned to her. “So… I think I’m going to bring my helmet today.” Yerim was just about to walk towards her bicycle, and unstrap the safety garment when Seulgi held up her hand.

“That won’t be necessary, I’m not driving.”

“Really? Then how are we getting to school?”

“There’s this guy, Jaebum, he’ll be our new ride to school.” Seulgi revealed, pointing to the car that turned down their street. “There he is now.”

“Did you manage to actually get a boyfriend??” Yerim questioned, bouncing in excitement. “This is so great!”

“Yeah, yeah. Play nice okay?” Seulgi pleaded as Jaebum’s car stopped in front of them. He quickly got out, running over to open the doors for them, starting with Yerim.

“Hi, I’m Jaebum, and you must be Yerim.” Jaebum greeted, a cheeky smile on his face.

“Nice to meet you, and thanks for taking me to school too! I hope you’re a better driver than unnie.”

“Well… I’ll let you judge, go ahead, hop in.” Yerim giggled as she climbed into the backseat, Jaebum closing the door once she was seated and buckled in. He then looked over at Seulgi, opening the passenger door. “Ready?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.” Seulgi admitted, getting in.

The drive was so far, so smooth. The radio playing to fill up the silence, until Yerim couldn’t take it anymore. “So, Jaebum-oppa? What made you ask unnie out?”

“Well… after reading her confession letter, I realized I had similar feelings. We’ve been friends for a bit, so I figured, why not just ask her out. We spent all yesterday together, and now we’re an item.” Jaebum answered, making eye contact with Yerim using the rearview mirror. Yerim seemed satisfied with that answer, nodding her head in acceptance.

“Amazing. I hope you know that unnie is a horrible cook, so don’t expect her to bring you lunch unless dad makes extra.”

“It’s fine, Yerim. I can cook, maybe I’ll start packing lunches.”

“And she really needs to get out during the weekends. She usually spends them reading cheesy romance books, or watching old movies. She also dresses in baggy, unflattering clothes, and doesn’t bother brushing her hair sometimes.”

“Yerim!”

“It’s true!”

“There’s nothing wrong with romance books and old movies, but I will take her out on the weekends, don’t worry, Yerim. Plus, I’m sure she’s still as cute with unkempt hair and baggy clothes.” Jaebum teased, reaching over to pat Seulgi’s knee.

“We’re almost to Yeri’s school.” Seulgi announced, trying to break up whatever was going down.

“I can’t wait to brag to Chaeyeon that I have a new ride to school! She’s going to be so jealous!”

After dropping Yerim off, Seulgi thought it would be a good opportunity to discuss their arrangement, “So… how is today supposed to pan out?”

“We get to school, I’ll walk you to your locker and class, we carry on with our classes as normal, and meet up before lunch so we can walk together. You can sit with me.”

“Or you can sit with me. My usual table is much less crowded than yours.”

“True, but I will have to introduce you to the guys.”

“And you to my friends as well.”

“I also have basketball practice after school… so if you want to come and study in the gym, you can.”

“Okay, sure. I can do that.” Seulgi agreed. She was a little nervous, wondering if they would be a believable couple, but it couldn’t be that bad right?

Once Jaebum’s car was parked in his assigned spot, it all came crashing over Seulgi. He quickly got out, jogging over to her side to open the door again, extending a hand to help her out. Seulgi grabbed hold of it briefly, before dropping it in favor of holding her books close. Jaebum locked up and they began walking side by side towards Seulgi’s locker. “Don’t you have things you need to put in your own locker?” Seulgi questioned as they walked down the hall.

“Not really, I tend to leave my textbooks at home, and I just have one big notebook for all the subjects.” Jaebum admitted, “The only thing I use my locker for really is my gym bag, which is mainly for after practice. My practice clothes are in my gym locker.”

“Do you want to put it in there?”

“… I mean; I could just do it after I walk you.”

“You don’t have to walk me to class, I wouldn't want you to be late.”

“I’m not going to be late, plus, I kind of have to. It’ll get people talking.”

“Oh…right…” Seulgi bit down on her bottom lip, “H-how about you just put your bag in my locker? I mean, I’ll be at your practice, especially if you don’t need it before then.”

“Okay, sure.” Seulgi put in her combination, opening the door and putting what she didn’t need into her locker, she then moved to the side, allowing Jaebum to place his gym bag down at the base of her locker. He then closed the door, and locked it back for her. “Shall we?” He extended his arm towards her, making Seulgi giggle slightly as she hooked her own through his. This was a start, in her opinion, not as intimate as hand holding and she appreciated it. It was all so fresh, so it was a great idea to ease into everything.

When they arrived at Seulgi’s first class, Jaebum surprised her by pulling her into a hug, whispering that he’d see her later right into her ear. Seulgi blushed bright red, and waved him off as he made his way down the hallway towards his own class. She was too busy watching him to notice Seungwan’s reaction. “Yah! What was that?”

“Uh… Im Jaebum?”

“I know _who_ it was! Why were you two so close? And why is everyone talking about how you _arrived_ together?”

Seulgi looked around, “I can’t tell you here.”  
“Why?” Seungwan pouted, and Seulgi sighed, pulling her best friend into their classroom and to their seats.

“You can’t tell anyone…but we’re dating… or at least pretending to.” Seungwan’s mouth dropped, and Seulgi hid her face behind her hands briefly. “Don’t give me that look! I know it’s sounds bad, and we’re just helping each other out.”

“This could go horribly wrong. I thought he rejected you!”

“He did, at first, and then we talked it over…and it’s only temporary.”

“I don’t understand…”

“I know, it’s complicated.”

“I just don’t want you to get hurt, Seulgi.”

“I won’t get hurt. I don’t have feelings for him like that.”

By the time lunch came around, everyone was talking about Seulgi and Jaebum. Seulgi wasn’t used to be the talk around school, Jaebum however, was. They met up with each other at Seulgi’s locker so they could walk together to lunch and make a grand entrance as a ‘couple’. “How’s your day so far?” Jaebum questions, extending an arm out to Seulgi who quickly hooked her own through.

“Fine… I didn’t expect news to travel as fast as it has.”

“Welcome to high school.” Jaebum sighed, “No one’s…being mean to you or anything right?”

“No…why? Has anyone said something to you?”

“No, no, I just want to make sure no ones bullying my girl.” Jaebum teased, “So what’s for lunch?”

“Do you ever bring your own food?”

“Not really. I usually mooch… and I think I got used to Nayeon always feeding me.”

“You know that I can’t cook, thanks to Yeri… but I’ll try to keep you fed too. Though, since you can cook, I do expect you to treat me every now and then.”

“How nice of you… and I can arrange that.”

“Wouldn’t want the captain of the basketball team to starve.”

“Don’t you mean you wouldn’t want your _boyfriend_ to starve?” Seulgi didn’t bother dignifying that with a response, and instead she tugged on his arm. Jaebum laughed off her silence opening the door to the cafeteria, Seulgi pulling him in right after her. “So your friends today, and then mine tomorrow?”

“Uh…” Seulgi trailed off, scanning for her usual table. Seungwan was already there, along with Sooyoung and Sungjae. Her eyes then trailed to Jaebum’s usual table, where some of his basketball teammates were. “Wouldn’t your teammates miss you? You sure you don’t want to sit with them?”

“I’ll see them later.” Jaebum explained, “They’ll be okay for a lunch without me.”

“Okay, I’ll introduce you to my friends then.” Seulgi led the way to her lunch table. “Hey! Jaebum is going to sit with us today.” Seulgi announced as she took a seat next to Seungwan, Jaebum plopping down next to her. “Jaebum, these are my best friends. Seungwan, Sooyoung, and then Sooyoung’s boyfriend Sungjae.” Jaebum smiles at each of Seulgi’s friends, though it falters slightly at Sooyoung. Sooyoung also happens to be Nayeon’s cousin, so he’s met her before. Though he’s not the one who ended his relationship with Nayeon, who knows what the other girl told her cousin, and now discovering that Sooyoung is also one of Seulgi’s closest friends, he could easily be painted as a bad guy. He’ll just try and stay on her good side.

“What brings you here?” Sooyoung asks, sipping her water as she watches Seulgi unpack her lunch. Today’s menu is japchae, and Sooyoung’s eyebrow raises when Seulgi offers Jaebum the first bite.

“These two are dating now, didn't you hear?” Seungwan questions.

“Oh? What about Nayeon?” Sungjae directs it to Jaebum, though Seulgi is quick to reply instead.

“She broke up with him over the summer, she’s seeing someone else too.”

“I hope you’re not a rebound, unnie.” Sooyoung states blatantly, and Jaebum feels a bit guilty.

“I can assure you, she’s not.”

“We’ll just have to see about that, won’t we?”

“So how long have you two been dating?” Sungjae then asks.

This time, Seungwan comes to their rescue, “They’ve been talking for a month or so, and they became official last night. Seulgi called me about it. It took him six dates to actually man up and ask her to be his girlfriend.”

“Yeah, I was so nervous.” Jaebum played along.

“I know what you mean! I remember when I asked Sooyoung out, I almost threw up from the nerves.” Sungjae admitted, laughing heartily. It relaxed Seulgi and Jaebum, because the conversation quickly changed to Sungjae and Sooyoung’s relationship. Day one of pretending was at a half-way point, and it was going well. It gave Seulgi reassurance that she could pull this off.

After her last class of the day, Seulgi received a text from Jaebum, explaining that he was already at the gym, changing for practice and she was free to come in and sit on the bleachers. She took her time, putting what she didn’t need in her locker, and packing what she would need. She then looked down at Jaebum’s gym bag, and decided to bring it with her, that way they could leave right after instead of walking back here. The bag was heavier than she thought, but she managed, making her way to the gym.

When she arrived, she slipped in as quietly as she could, noticing Jaebum right away as he lead the warm-up drills. She felt a little silly, being there at first, and then she noticed a few other girls sitting on the bleachers, studying. It made her feel at ease, and she looked back over at Jaebum, finding him looking at her too. He told the team to continue before jogging over to her. “Hey, let me help you with that.” He stated, reaching for his gym bag along with her backpack.

“I just thought I’d bring it with me since I was already at my locker.” Seulgi explained, allowing him to carry the bags.

“Good idea, I’ll show you where you can sit.” Jaebum stated, placing an arm around her shoulders as he escorted her to the bleachers, ignoring the hoots from his teammates. A few rows up from the floor, Jaebum placed their things down. “You can sit tight here, and I’ll check up on you during our first break. I have snacks and drinks in my bag in case you get thirsty or hungry…and the restrooms are over there in case you need to use them.” Seulgi nodded her head, thanking him before he left her be.

She sat back, watching for a bit before getting bored and pulling out some of her homework to work on. After completing an easy math assignment, she gave up on homework in favor of working on some art. A few minutes after that, she was starting to feel a bit hungry and she unzipped Jaebum’s bag to look for the snacks that he mentioned. He had a few sports drinks, and granola bars, along with a mix of nuts and dried fruits. She munched on a bit of the trail mix, and stuck to drinking water, saving the sports drinks for him since he would need them. She pulled out her sketchbook and then her phone, pulling up a picture she wanted to try drawing. She was so lost in her art, she didn’t hear him approach. “Wow, that’s amazing, Seulgi.” He complimented, making her blush.

“Thank you. Are you on break?” She questioned, sitting up and stretching slightly.

“Yeah… we’re done with all our drills, so we’re about to start a practice match against each other.” He explained, rummaging into his bag for a drink, gulping half the bottle down in seconds. “You’re not too bored are you?”

“No, I’m fine.”

“That’s good.”

“Hey, cap! Who’s your friend?” One of Jaebum’s teammates questioned.

“That’s Mark,” Jaebum explained to Seulgi, “And this is my girlfriend, Seulgi.”

“Girlfriend? Wow, I’m sorry.” Mark teased, “He’s a handful, how do you put up with him?”

“I don’t know…” Seulgi joked, laughing at the offended look Jaebum gave her.

“I’m hurt.”

“So are you two going to the party this weekend at Amber’s? It’s going to be crazy, a huge back to school bash!” Another teammate questioned from where he was seated next to one of the other girls sitting in on practice, Jaebum introduced him as Jackson and her as Youngji.

“Yeah, we’ll be there.” Seulgi answered.

“Awesome! The more the merrier.”

As the days carried on, Seulgi found playing the part as Jaebum’s girlfriend extremely easy. They alternated between eating lunches with her friends and his teammates, though Jaebum was subtly trying to merge the two. Seulgi also made friends with some of the other basketball girlfriends, now that’s she’s been to at least three practices with Jaebum, in the four days they’ve been ‘dating’.

It was now Friday, and the party would be later tonight. Jaebum was finishing up a final recap with his team, and talking about the upcoming game before practice was dismissed. He jogged over to Seulgi, climbing his way up the bleachers effortlessly. “Do you mind if I skip my shower and just take you home?”

“No, I don’t.” Seulgi shared, grabbing a hold of the towel he usually kept in his bag and dabbing at the sweat sticking to his face. Jaebum silently thanked her with a smile.

“I’ll pick you up for the party around seven? We can get dinner before.”

“Sure, it’s a date.” Seulgi teases, using this as an opportunity to remind herself that this was fake.

“Alright, lovebirds! Break it up! No kissing in the gym!” Mark hoots, and Seulgi hides behind her hands.

“Shut up.” Jaebum calls out, grabbing his towel from Seulgi in favor of tossing it at Mark. “You ready to go?”

“Yes.” Seulgi stood to her feet while Jaebum quickly gathered their bags. He then reached out, grabbing hold of her hand and leading the way down the bleacher stands. Once on level ground, Seulgi expected Jaebum to let go of her hand, but instead he continued to hold it until they got to his car.

He dropped her off at home, with the promise to be back at seven sharp. She waved him off, entering her home with a pep in her step. “I’m home!” She called out, removing her shoes and placing them in the closet by the front door.

“Hi unnie!” Yerim greeted from where she was doing homework in the living room. “Where’s your boyfriend?” Yerim then teased.

“He’s headed home.”

“Boyfriend? When did you get a boyfriend?” Her father, Joonmyun asked as he came from the kitchen with an apple sliced on a plate, handing it to Yerim.

“Oh...uhm…we’ve been together for a week now.” Seulgi admitted, forgetting that she never told her dad that she was ‘dating’ Jaebum.

“Who is he? Do I know him?”

“Im Jaebum.”

“Ahh! Jaebum! I didn’t know you still talked, you haven’t mentioned him since middle school.”

“Well yeah, you know…things change.”

“You know, I went to college with his mother, Yeeun… yeah, we shared some undergraduate courses together before we went into separate fields. I went into pediatrics, and she went into dentistry.”

“I did not know that.”

“Yes, she was a good friend. I’m sure her son is just as nice and good to you.”

“Yeah, he is… so I’m going to go do homework for now. I’m going out tonight, so I don’t need dinner, thanks!” Seulgi made her escape and quickly locked herself into her room.

At seven sharp, Seulgi was finishing her makeup when Yerim announced that Jaebum was there. She grabbed her purse, and quickly made her way down the stairs. Upon reaching the last step, she found Jaebum greeting her father, and Seulgi groaned. “Okay, we’re headed out.”

“Whoa, not so fast! I was just having a polite conversation with Jaebum here.” Joonmyun stated.

“I’m sure you were.”

“I was telling him what I told you earlier, how his mother and I went to school together…and how she was nice, so I expected him to be just as nice.”

“Yes, I understand.” Seulgi commented, doing her best to subtly push Jaebum closer and closer to the exit.

“You know, Jaebum, I love each one of my daughters dearly, and I don’t ever want anything bad to happen to them.”

“Yes, sir.”

“I also want Seulgi home before midnight.”

“No problem, sir.”

“Can we go now?” Seulgi asks, practically shoving Jaebum out the door.

“Yes, you may.”

“You look pretty. Yellow is a good color on you.” Jaebum commented on the drive. Seulgi had a crisis over her outfit earlier, and decided to go casual with a yellow t-shirt tucked into some light wash jeans, with a black belt and black boots. Jaebum himself was wearing dark jeans, a gray t-shirt, with a black bomber jacket and some Nikes.

“Thank you and you look handsome.”

“You’re just saying that.”

“No! I mean it.” Seulgi laughed, “So… I’ve never been to one of these parties before. What’s it like?”

“Just a bunch of teens drinking and dancing. I don’t usually stay for long, just long enough to be seen, talk to people and appear in enough photos to were it seems like I stayed long enough.”

“Is that still your plan tonight?”

“Pretty much, if that’s okay with you.”

“Yes, that’s fine with me.”

For dinner, Jaebum chose an Italian restaurant, which Seulgi found cute. It was almost like a real date, but they both knew it wasn’t…just two friends getting dinner before a party, ignoring all romantic ambience. They were seated rather quickly and were soon looking over the menu. “What are you going to get?” Jaebum questions and Seulgi shrugs.

“Cream pasta? Or carbonara? What about you?”

“Lamb with risotto? We can share.”

“Okay!” Seulgi smiles, waiting for their server to come over and take their order. Once they ordered and were given their drinks, they fell into silence.

“Are you having your movie night tomorrow? With Yerim?”

“I am… why do you ask?”

“I have no plans tomorrow…maybe I’ll just skate or something.”

“Well, you can join us, if you have nothing to do.”

“I’d love to.”

“I’m sure Yerim won’t mind, she likes you.”

“She does?”

“Yep! She wants to introduce you to her favorite jelly candies too.”

“Awesome.”

By the time their food came out, they were back to small talk. When it did come out, Seulgi took some time to arrange their plates to make it easier for them to share. “Do you mind if I Snapchat you?”

“Like right now?”

“Yeah… we can start a streak… since we’re dating and stuff.”

“Go ahead.” Seulgi teases.

“I also want to post this to my story, make everyone jealous of our spread.” Jaebum reveals, taking his phone out of his pocket.

“I wouldn’t have pegged you as the type to do that.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah, I mean your insta is well thought out aesthetics.”

“True… but Snapchat is different for me. I probably snap too much of my day. And your insta is mostly of your art… with the occasional selfie.” Jaebum said unlocking his phone, “You should post more selfies.”

“Oh really?”

“Yeah, you’re really pretty.” Jaebum tells her, going silent as he takes a quick snap video of their food and then of Seulgi giggling at his compliment. He then posts it to his story with the caption ‘date night with my girl’.

“I’ll take more selfies if you stop hiding half your face in your posts.” Seulgi promises, taking her own phone out and snapping candid photos of Jaebum.

“Deal. Let’s shake on it.” He reached a hand out and Seulgi met him in the middle, giving it a firm shake. “Now, let’s eat!”

“Do those people even go to our school?” Seulgi asks as Jaebum leads her through the entrance of Amber’s home.

“I don’t think so.” Jaebum laughs, “Are you thirsty, do you want a drink?”

“Sure. I’ll wait here.” Seulgi takes a seat on a nearby couch.

“I’ll be back in a flash.” Jaebum states before disappearing in a different section of the house. Seulgi takes in her surroundings, this is definitely new to her. She usually never goes to parties, but she is expecting to have a good night. As she waits, she pulls out her phone, looking over some of the photos she took of Jaebum earlier at dinner.

She wasn’t lying when she told him earlier that he was handsome, and the photos she took of him tonight reinforce that statement. Without really thinking, she set her favorite photo of him as her lock screen. After realizing what she did, she used the excuse of making their little act more believable. Girls used photos of their boyfriends as their backgrounds all the time, she justified to herself.

When Jaebum came back with a drink, Seulgi took a tentative sip, surprised that it was cola, and then felt bad that she thought he’d try to get her to drink alcohol. “I don’t drink liquor, mainly beer, but since I'm driving and responsible for you, I’m not drinking tonight.” Jaebum confesses.

“Oh…” Seulgi trailed off, scooting over to make way for him to sit.

“Yeah and I just assumed you didn’t drink either.”

“I usually don’t…just occasional sips of my dad’s wine at dinner.”

“Good to know.”

“JB!” Mark called out once he noticed the other. Jaebum waved him over, reclining back and causally putting an arm around Seulgi’s shoulders. “My favorite lovebirds.”

“Shut up.”

“Did you two just arrive?”

“Yeah, we’ve been here for ten minutes or so.”

“And you didn’t come find us immediately? I’m hurt,” Mark faked, “Actually, I’m surprised you actually came. I saw your dinner date on snap and I figured you’d spend the evening alone together.”

“Kind of, we’re not staying for too long.” Jaebum admitted.

“No shame in that. Come on! I’ll show you where Amber is so you can compliment the party to her face, you know how she loves validation.” Jaebum nodded in agreement, standing to his feet and then lending a hand to Seulgi. She took it, standing up as well. Jaebum tightened his grip on her hand, and held it as they made their way through the crowds in search for Amber.

They found her and exchanged pleasantries. Seulgi kind of just stood there, close to Jaebum as Amber went on and on about how happy she was to see them. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Nayeon and tensed slightly. It must have been noticeable by Jaebum, because he turned and whispered if she was okay. She nodded her head, and tried to remain calm. She and Nayeon weren’t on the best of terms after a dumb fight back in freshmen year that Seulgi doesn’t even remember what the cause was. Nayeon hasn’t gone out of her way to be mean, but she hasn’t tried to be all that nice either. Jaebum didn’t seem to buy into her fake smile and looked around briefly. He noticed Nayeon too, and his expression changed when he saw her new boyfriend, Brian, was with her. “You okay, man?” Jinyoung questioned soon after, he and Mark were breaking away from the conversation with Amber and now focused their attention on Jaebum.

“Yeah… it’s nothing.”

Mark followed Jaebum’s line of sight, “Yo, remember, she broke up with you…and now you have Seulgi. She’s moved on, and that’s okay, because you have too.”

“Y-yeah. Should I say hi or something though?”

“No way!” Jinyoung stated, “I doubt she’ll go out of her way to say hi, so why should you?”

“We dated for two years, it just seems right.” Jaebum tried to rationalize. Seulgi was starting to feel bad, and she didn’t want this night to be ruined by Jaebum falling into low spirits.

“Jaebum?” Seulgi calls out, “Let’s dance.” She gives him a small smile, ignoring the thumbs up his friends are giving her before pulling him away and towards a crowd of fellow classmates dancing.

“Thanks for that. I was probably becoming a buzz kill, huh?” Jaebum asks as Seulgi takes both of his hands into her own and begins swaying to the beat of some catchy pop song.

“No, I mean…like you said, you two were together for a couple of years, I don’t expect your feelings for her to just go away. Plus, isn’t that why we’re doing this? So you can ultimately show her what’s she’s missing and win her back?”

“Y-yeah… you’re right.”

“So cheer up! If we’re going to be successful, you have to seem like you enjoy my company.”

“I _do_ enjoy your company.”

“Prove it.” Seulgi teases, giggling when Jaebum pulls her a bit closer as they continue to dance. It doesn’t take long for Jaebum to forget about Nayeon as he gets lost in Seulgi’s giggles and the sway of her hips to the music.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> seulgi attends jaebum's first basketball game of the season...and nayeon finds out that they're an item.

Jaebum’s first basketball game for the season is coming up, and Seulgi is nervous. It’s an away game, and she’s already told him to go ahead with his teammates and she’ll just meet him there. She goes with Youngji and Seungwan, carpooling in Youngji’s car, equipped with his jacket to show support. His jersey number is proudly stitched on the back, and Seulgi puts her hair in a bun specifically to show it off.

When they arrive at the rival school’s gym, Youngji shows them where they can sit, and it makes Seulgi laugh because Jaebum wasn’t exaggerating about all the girlfriends of team members sitting and wearing their boyfriend’s jackets. “I feel left out.” Seungwan teases, sitting down next to Seulgi.

“If it makes you feel better, even after sitting in on so many practices, I’m still horrible at knowing the rules. We’ll just have to follow Youngji’s lead.”

“I can do that.”

The teams are doing warm-ups, practicing their shots and such, and Seulgi waves at Jaebum when he glances over. He waves back, a huge smile on his face, and Seulgi’s face feels a bit warm. “So…how much longer are you two going to keep this up?” Seungwan suddenly asks, whispering it into Seulgi’s ear.

“I… I don’t know.”

“You two are kind of cute together.”

“You think so?”

“Uh…yes! He normally gives off this cold city boy vibe, but when he’s around you, he’s constantly smiling. Plus, whenever you two hang out, which is like all the time now, it’s cute seeing your little pictures. I saw the one he took when you two were sharing headphones that day you both went for a walk in the park…so cute! If I didn’t know any better, I’d swear you two were the real deal.”

“Well, I guess that makes us great actors, and we were once really close friends.”

“Oh, come on! Be honest with me, would you even consider dating him?”

“I mean… yes, but that doesn't matter. He would probably never like me that way, and it’s just temporary. Nayeon’s relationship is still new, so she’s still extremely interested in Brian, which is fine… she’ll eventually grow tired of him, and before we know it, she’ll probably be crawling back to Jaebum. I give it a month.”

“If you say so…though, if I was you, I’d be making the most out of my time with him.” Seungwan states.

“The game is starting.” Youngji announces, and the girls cheer with the crowd.

Ten minutes into the game, Seungwan is tapping Seulgi on the arm, “What is it now?”

“Isn’t that Nayeon’s new boyfriend??” Seungwan points at one of the players on the other team, that’s trying to steal the ball from Jackson.

“Oh my god, it is!”

“That means Nayeon is probably here.”

“Yes! Maybe you can really make her jealous.” Seungwan giggles, as Jackson passes the ball to Jaebum. “Go on! Cheer for your man!”

“He’s not my man.”

“Everyone else thinks he is.” Seungwan reminds her as Jaebum shoots the ball, watching it swoosh through the net. Seulgi jumps to her feet in excitement, while the boys all run to pat Jaebum on the back for the first basket of the night. Jaebum looks over at her again, and she gives him a thumbs up, while he blows her a kiss, making the other girls on the team coo. “Now there’s no doubt in other people’s minds.” Seungwan laughs, and Seulgi fans her face, trying to cool down. “And I think Nayeon might have caught on now…” She points across the court.

Across the court, it appears like Nayeon is staring directly at her, so Seulgi avoids eye contact. “You think she hates me even more?” Seulgi asks Seungwan who shrugs her shoulder.

“Maybe. I probably would if you dated my ex.”

“Thanks for the reassurance.”

“I mean, who even cares? She hasn’t exactly been your friend lately, and it’s not like she’ll really do anything to _you_.”

“You’re right.”

Their school ended up winning and Seulgi stood with everyone as the players shook hands before running over to their coach for congratulations. Jaebum then ran over after, “Hey! Thanks for coming.”

“Congratulations on winning!” Seulgi exclaims, Jaebum hugging her tightly. Seungwan did her best and caught a few photos of the moment. “How do you celebrate?”

“Usually with burgers, you down? You’re invited too, Seungwan.”

“Thanks. I’d love a burger.”

“Sit tight, and I’ll come fetch you after I change out of these sweaty clothes.” Jaebum states, tucking stray hairs behind Seulgi’s ear. She nods her head and watches him leave, ignoring the stars in Seungwan’s eyes.

“You two are so stinking cute!”

“Shut up.”

When Jaebum comes to get them, he has Mark following him. “Jackson is going to ride with Youngji, so you two can ride with me. Mark’s coming with us too.” Jaebum silently holds out his hand, and Seulgi grabs hold, intertwining their fingers. They’ve recently been doing this more, various forms of affection coming off more naturally. “Mark, you know Seungwan right? She’s Seulgi’s best friend.”

“I don’t think I do. Nice to meet you.”

“Nice to meet you too.”

The group of four make their way to the parking lot, passing by other teammates and reconfirming that they would all meet up at their favorite burger joint. On their way to the car, Seulgi tells Jaebum how much fun she had at the game, and how cool he looked scoring all those baskets. “Seulgi!” Someone calls out, causing the pretend couple to pause in their tracks. Seulgi’s eyes widen a bit when she sees Nayeon waving her down, and she quickly drops her hold on Jaebum’s hand. “I had no idea that you liked basketball.” Nayeon smiles, sweetly but Seulgi knows its fake. Nayeon’s arms are wrapped around her new boyfriend, and Jaebum stands a bit straighter, he’s practically the same height as Brian, if you ignore the slight centimeter difference in Brian’s favor.

“Well, yeah, Jaebum’s teaching her all about it.” Seungwan speaks up.

“Oh… really? I almost forgot you two used to be friends. What brings you here together anyway?” Nayeon questions but Seulgi sees through it, “Oh, and this is my boyfriend Brian. He’s the small forward of the team, and he’s also in a band with his friends.”

“Seulgi is my girlfriend,” Jaebum speaks out, “And nice to formally meet you, Brian. Good game tonight.”

“Yeah, it was a good game.” Brian states, and Nayeon’s attention returns to Seulgi.

“I had no idea that Jaebum was even your type, Seulgi.”

“Well, you know… I don’t really have a type.”

“True…but still, Jaebum was the last person I saw you hooking up with.”

“You know, this little reunion is nice, but we should really get going.” Seungwan urges.

“She’s right, we should make it to the restaurant before Jackson goes around telling all the staff that we won our game and tries to get free milkshakes.” Mark adds. “Nice seeing you, Nayeon.”

“Mhm…” Nayeon hums, eyes narrowing in Seulgi’s direction as Seulgi blindly reaches for Jaebum’s hand again.

“See you around at school.” Seulgi waves off, before turning to quickly walk away.

“That was so awkward.” Seungwan pouts, “I can’t believe she said those things to your face! Like who does she think she is??”

“It’s fine,” Seulgi tries to assure her friend as the boys talk to the host for a table.

“It’s not fine! You should show her that Jaebum _is_ your type, and just how unnecessary her comments were. ‘Jaebum was the last person I saw you hooking up with’, like _please_. She barely knows you anymore.”

“Seungwan, it’s fine.” Seulgi pokes at Seungwan’s cheek, making the other girl simmer down.

“Tables ready!” Mark announces, following the host.

“We’ll talk later.” Seulgi tells her best friend as they follow.

By the time that they sit down, it doesn’t take too long for the other boys from the basketball team to show up, and then the noise level rises steadily. Seulgi sits at the end of the table, Jaebum on her right, with his arm draped over her shoulders. Seungwan is across from her, sitting next to Mark. They all have ordered and are just waiting for their food to be delivered. Seulgi’s sides hurt from laughing so much, because the team is rowdy, with Jackson spearheading all the commotion. “I think our captain should say something.” Jackson stated, pointing over at Jaebum.

“No, I’m good.”

“Come on! Just a few words.”

“Coach already said what I wanted to say earlier, after the game.”

“Just say something else then.” Seulgi prompts.

“Okay…”

“Whipped.” Jackson mutters under his breath, ignoring the glare that Jaebum gives him.

“It’s the first game of the season, and we came out as victors. If we keep this up, we can easily make it to the playoffs which is our goal after a hard season last year. Let’s all continue to work hard at each practice and play our best games in the future. There, speech done.”

“We love you too captain!” Jaehyun teases with Yoo Youngjae.

“Speech done.” BamBam mimics.

“Seulgi! Did you know your boyfriend can fit an entire hamburger into his mouth?” Jackson then questions and Seulgi breaks out into even more laughter.

“What are you saying! I can’t do that!” Jaebum counters.

“You totally can!” Mark chimes in.

“Did you know that he’s ambidextrous? He writes with his left hand, but eats with his right.”

“Why are you all sharing these random facts?” Jaebum questions, embarrassed as Seulgi continues to laugh.

“Seungwan! Share some facts too!” Jackson requests.

“If she laughs too much, she cries.” Seungwan shares, peeking over at Seulgi. “It’s starting now.” Sure enough, Seulgi’s laughter changed to weeping. It made everyone else laugh more, which made Seulgi cry more as she tried to stop laughing as well. Jaebum pulled her close, letting Seulgi hide in the crook of his neck as she calmed herself down. “So cute.” Seungwan teases, starting more hoots and hollers from other guys, who then have to be calmed down by their own girlfriends.

Seulgi peeks up at Jaebum, surprised to find him already looking at her. “Are you okay?” He asks, keeping his voice low. She nods and Jaebum reaches forward, wiping away a stray tear. Seulgi pulls away, sitting up and straightening Jaebum’s jacket on her frame. The food comes out shortly after, giving them relief from their friends’ teasing.

After dinner, and more conversation, they all go their separate ways. Jaebum takes Seungwan and Mark home first, and then Seulgi. He walks her to the front door, and thanks her for coming to his game. “It’s in the contract…” She reminds him, “But I did have fun.”

“I’m also sorry for Nayeon, I didn’t think she would speak to you that way.”

“I can handle Nayeon.”

“We’ve been dating for like… two weeks now. People aren’t really looking at us anymore, but that doesn’t mean we have to get lazy.”

“I understand.”

“… So I’ll pick you and Yerim up at the usual time, right?”

“Yes.”

“Goodnight Seulgi.” Jaebum smiles brightly, opening his arms for a hug. Seulgi returns the embrace.

“Goodnight Jaebum.”

~~ 

“My mom wants to invite you over for dinner,” Jaebum tells Seulgi a week later after school as they walk together to his car.

“Really?”

“Yeah… what do you think?”

“I’d like that.”

“I’d probably cook, so I can pick you up and we can go shopping and then you can help me.”

“I’m not good at cooking, you know that.”

“Yeah, but I’ll be there to help you.”

“Okay, sure… does this weekend sound good?”

“Totally.”

“Ah! That reminds me.” Seulgi stops walking and digs around in her bag for her sketchbook. “I’ve been working on this piece for my portfolio and I wanted to show it to you. It’s not finished but I still wanted to share it with you.” She turns a few pages and then proudly displays a photo. It's a sketch of Jaebum, laughing freely, based off a candid Seulgi took last time they watched movies with Yerim.

“Seulgi…this is amazing.” Jaebum compliments, “You’re so talented.”

“Thanks… it’s one of my favorite photos of you, so I wanted to try and recreate it on paper with some watercolor practice in the mix.”

“It’s really good.” Jaebum reiterates, “Wow, my girlfriend is an artist.”

“Shut up…” Seulgi pouts, getting embarrassed from all the compliments, “Are you doing anything tonight?”

“Nope.”

“Stay at my house for a bit?”

“Would your dad mind?”

“He won’t be home, Yerim has a parent-teacher thing today.”

“Sure, I can stay and keep you company.”

Jaebum has become well acquainted with Seulgi’s home, hanging out here on the weekends if they don’t go out with their friends, so he makes himself comfortable on the couch as Seulgi gets some drinks and snacks for them. When she comes back, taking a seat right next to him, he feels giddy for some reason. Part of him could easily find himself falling for Seulgi, but he always reminded himself that this wasn’t real, and she probably wouldn’t feel that way about him, especially when the premise of this relationship is trying to get him back with Nayeon. It’s just hard because the more time he spends with Seulgi, the more he realizes that Nayeon doesn’t make him as happy. Things are effortless with Seulgi, while he always has to work hard with Nayeon.

Seulgi drapes her legs over his lap as she scrolls through her phone, snacking on some chips she poured into a bowl. Jaebum takes out his own phone, launching his snapchat. He has so many snaps saved, memories of this brief romance with Seulgi, that he’ll be able to look back on. He launches one of the filters, pointing the camera at Seulgi and snaps a photo, typing out a quick caption of ‘chilling with my baby bear’. The line is corny, cheesy really, and though he usually hates cheesy things, he can’t help it around her. “We should do homework or something, but I don’t feel like it.” Seulgi suggests.

“Same, I’m content just sitting here.”

“Let’s listen to music then.” Seulgi quickly scrolls through her playlists, and selects one.

“Let’s also play a game.”

“What game?”

“20 Questions?”

“Okay…” Seulgi sits up, removing her feet from his lap and instead folding them under herself, “Can I go first?”

“That’s your first question.” Jaebum teases, chuckling softly when she pouts. “I’m kidding, go ahead.”

“Why did you decide on getting so many piercings?” Seulgi asks, reaching out to jingle the three dangling from his left ear.

“I don’t know… fit the bad boy image I was trying to portray.”

“You’re way too sweet to be a bad boy. Tsundere maybe.”

“Not everyone shares that same thought.”

“Maybe because you don’t share this side with everyone.”

“Why did you ask about my piercings? Do you not like them?”

“I like them! You kind of make me want to get another one.”

“Really? I’ll go with you!” Jaebum reaches out, tucking some hair behind her ears to examine them, “A second piercing would look good on you.”

“You think so?”

“Yeah…”

“More questions! Uhm…” Seulgi nibbles on her bottom lip, “What made you so interested in Nayeon?”

“I’m not really sure? I remember Choi Youngjae telling me that she liked me, and I thought she was cute, so I figured why not? It seemed like everyone else around us was dating someone then, so I guess I felt like I should too.”

“Oh…”

“How come…you haven’t really dated anyone?”

“Unrequited love appears to be my thing. Every time I developed a crush on someone, the timing was wrong.” Seulgi answers, truthfully, looking down at the frays in her jeans. She begins picking at them, only stopping when Jaebum grabs hold of her hand.

“If I were to ask…would you tell me who else received a love letter?”

“…Probably.”

“Well… who else?”

Seulgi’s playing with his fingers now, refusing to look at him, because this is embarrassing. “I wrote Sungjae one back in grade seven… then I wrote another one for a guy named Taeyong that was in a dance class with me for a summer. Freshmen year, I wrote your letter…and then this past summer, I wrote one to Bogeum.”

“Your neighbor?”

“Also, Joohyun’s boyfriend, yes.” Seulgi frowns.

“Why didn’t you send them when you wrote them?” Jaebum asks carefully. He’s not really sure if he wants the answer, but it’s too late to take it back. He also can’t help himself from wondering what would have happened if she confessed to him back then, it was dated before he dated Nayeon…maybe things would have been different? Maybe this would have been real.

“I wrote them for myself, more than for actually confessing. It seemed cowardly that I could only do so on a piece of paper instead of in person, but I couldn't keep them bottled up. I guess I was saving myself from rejection.”

“Was Bogeum the one you were trying to avoid that day?”

“Yes,” Seulgi nods, finally looking up at Jaebum again, “I still am avoiding him. I’m afraid of what could happen. I wrote the letter because I was forcing myself to get over him. He and my sister were so happy, and I couldn’t stand that at one point I actually thought _I_ would be better for him. I hated myself for a bit because of it, still kind of do.”

“I think it’s pretty brave that you were willing to bare your heart out on paper, even if you didn’t plan on sending them. You have to give yourself credit there.”

“I guess, you’re right…but I still was rejected by Sungjae, and then you. Bogeum too, I’m just not ready to actually hear it.”

“What makes you think you’ll be rejected? Seulgi, you’re amazing, you're talented, you're kind and you’re beautiful. Any guy would be lucky to call you theirs.”

“Even if he wasn’t to reject me, I could never do that to my sister.” Seulgi squeezes his hand, “Enough about this, you pretty much blew through half of your questions. I have one that’s kind of serious.”

“Alright.”

“We’ve known each other since middle school…why did our friendship end after you dated Naeyon? I mean, I knew she didn’t care for me, but I never realized it was enough for you to stop caring about me too.”

“I never stopped caring about you, Seulgi. You still were my friend, but I… I wanted the relationship to work out. Nayeon was so happy with me in the beginning, and I didn’t want to disappoint. So I put my all into our relationship, and unfortunately that meant distancing myself from other friends that happened to be girls. She could get jealous easily, and it’d start fights, and I wanted to avoid those fights… I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings in the meantime. I didn’t mean to.”

“I really missed you, Jaebum. We got along so well as kids, but now we’re different people. We still have a lot to learn about each other.”

“Well… good thing we’re friends again. We can start over, learn all of those new things.” Jaebum smiles, “By the way, have you ever received a love letter yourself?”

“No… no one really writes letters anymore.”

“You do.”

“I still read cheesy romance novels.”

“Would you like to receive them?”

Seulgi pauses, thinking over his words, “Maybe someday, yes I would.” Jaebum opened his mouth to reply, but the sound of a key turning a lock made him stop. “Oh? Appa and Yerim are home.” Seulgi stated, turning the music down and letting go of his hand, standing to greet her family as they entered the house. Jaebum smiled, standing and greeting them as well.

“Jaebum, nice to see you again.” Joonmyun greets, hands full with groceries.

“Would you like some help?” Jaebum asks, taking a step forward to grab a bag.

“Oh no, no. I’m fine. Thank you… are you staying for dinner?”

“Actually… I think I should head out. I wouldn’t want to impose.”

“You’re welcomed to stay!” Joonmyun counters.

“No, I insist.” Jaebum turns to Seulgi, “I’ll be leaving now…”

“Okay, I’ll walk you out.”

“No need.” Jaebum gathers his bags, but before he leaves, Seulgi pulls him close, quickly placing a kiss on his cheek. “I-I’ll text you.”

“Okay…”

After dinner with her family, Seulgi packed the leftovers away to bring to Jaebum during lunch. As she did so, her mind replayed their earlier conversations. They got a little personal during their game of 20 questions, and it made Seulgi happy that they got to share this moment and open up to each other. It did not, however, help their predicament. They weren’t in a real relationship, it was all for show, but it feels more and more real with each passing day. She feels like she’s slowly entering crush territory again the more they hang out, the more they text, the more they post about each other on their social media accounts.

Shortly after Jaebum left, Seulgi posted about him for the first time on her Instagram. It was a series of photos, the first one that displays just so happens to be of Jaebum, but when you scroll you saw photos with others from the basketball team along with her own friends; all taken when they went bowling a few days ago. It didn’t down right reveal that he was her ‘boyfriend’, mainly because she still hadn’t told Joohyun. Honestly, she’s been avoiding all conversation with her older sister, afraid that she’d let something slip. However, this was the start of something. Their act would only become harder from now on, and she hoped she would be able to keep her feelings at bay until it was over. 


	4. chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> more insight on jaebum's feelings.

Jaebum wishes he could concentrate on his homework, but it’s hard when Mark and Jinyoung are cackling like a duo of hyenas. “What’s so funny anyway?” Jaebum questions, looking up from his text book, and instead turning to where his friends were sitting on the floor, leaning against his bed frame.

“This video of Jackson dancing.”

“Can you all keep it down? You’re so noisy.”

“Oh?? Are we bothering you??” Mark teases.

“Yeah, you are.” Jaebum laughs.

“How come you’re actually hanging out with us today, by the way?” Jinyoung questions.

“What do you mean? We hang out sometimes.”

“No, you hang out with Seulgi.”

“Not all the time.”

“Yes, all the time!” Mark corrects, “It’s not a big deal, you obviously like her a lot, so I see why you want to hang out with her. Actually, I’m surprised you haven’t ditched us yet for her.”

“What do you mean?”

“What he’s saying is, he’s surprised you haven’t been absorbed and focused on your phone and preparing to go tend to her beck and call.” Jinyoung clarifies.

“For one, we don’t have to talk all the time. Two, she’s doing a family thing right now. Yerim had a school play.” Jaebum answers, “She’s probably too busy to text me…which is fine.”

“Aww! You miss her? Don’t you?”

“So what if I do? I’m hanging out with you guys, so let’s drop the subject.”

“We don’t mean to make you feel bad. It’s just… you two have been dating for like a month, and been pretty inseparable. We got so used to you dating Nayeon, and only hanging out with her during school and at parties… and then spending a lot of time with us outside of practice, but with Seulgi, it’s like constant.”

“This might be a weird question…but… what do you two think about that?” Jaebum asks, seeing their point.

“About what?” Mark question.

“About my relationship with Seulgi, versus what I had with Nayeon.”

“They’re both cool girls, and you seem happy with them both. That being said… it does kind of seem like you have more fun with Seulgi.”

“Yeah, Mark’s right. You smile and laugh more around her, and I don’t remember you taking Nayeon to any art museums.”

“Yeah, since when do you like museums?”

“Who doesn’t like museums? Plus, there’s an exhibit on portraits, and that’s what Seulgi mainly draws, and it’ll help with inspiration for her portfolio, so she wanted to go and I figured it can’t be that bad.” Jaebum answers, not really seeing anything wrong with that.

“Well, we’re happy if you’re happy. We like Seulgi too, she’s cool to hang out with.”

“Thanks…let’s do some homework now, yeah?” Jaebum suggests, turning back to his textbook. Of course, now that he’s ready to work again, his phone buzzes with a text.

From: SseulBear

>> this is so boring

>> i’d rather be eating

>> let’s eat ramen tomorrow

Accompanying her texts is a cute picture she must have taken in the bathroom, posing with finger hearts. Jaebum’s heart sings at the photo, and he then tries to avert his eyes from the bit of her torso showing from her crop top. He types a quick reply, and then starts back on his homework.

To: SseulBear

<< my bear is so cute

<< doing hw with the boys

<< can’t wait to see you tomorrow

~~

Today’s plan was to go to the museum, have lunch, go shopping, cook, and then have dinner together with Jaebum’s mom. He gets to spend the entire day with Seulgi, and Jaebum was really looking forward to it. He was starting to develop a crush on Seulgi, but he also still had feelings for Nayeon. He was truly torn.

Part of him, wanted to abandon the thought of getting back together with Nayeon, so he could just continue on with this blossoming relationship. His mind went back to Seulgi admitting that she had a crush on him two years ago, prior to him dating Nayeon, and he can’t stop imagining what if he had received that letter earlier. What if they had dated back then? Would they have gotten along as well as they do now? Would they still be together?

The other part, reminds him that he had rejected her confession. It reminds him that her crush was two years ago, and since then she’s liked Bogeum. She might say that she’s over it, that she doesn’t want to pursue a relationship with Bogeum, but are her feelings really gone? What if she still has feelings for Bogeum? What if she finally faces her fear and talks to Bogeum, and Bogeum confesses his own feelings then her relationship with him ends? While he was using her to get back with Nayeon, what if she’s also using him to get with Bogeum?

Jaebum doesn’t want to think these negative thoughts, he wants to live in the moment, where things are good, but it gets harder to do that. The more he spends time with Seulgi, the more natural they are around each other. The more he wants to hold her hand, hold her in his arms, admire her beauty. The more he wants to tell her how he thinks of her when he wakes, and then thinks of her again when he lies to sleep. The more he wants to kiss her, but he knows he can’t.

Seulgi clings to his arm as they walk, and it’s okay because he actually likes it. Her left hand is smooth and delicate compared to his rough and slightly calloused right one, and it’s cute how she curls into him, resting her head on his shoulder as her right hand wraps around his right bicep. She tells him everything she knows about the artists as they stop to admire each exhibit, and Jaebum listens intently. She’s excited, and it shows in her voice and how her eyes dart over each detail, explaining techniques and talking about the different layers to some of the paintings. Jaebum could listen to her for hours.

After spending two hours at the museum, they go to the nearest convenience store, buying some cup noodles and sit on a bench, enjoying the weather. “You’ll never guess who contacted me the other day.” Seulgi says, reaching over the table to feed Jaebum some of her ramen. “Nayeon.” She answers, knowing his mouth is too full to ask. She also swipes at his lip, removing a bit of broth. “She commented on my photo of you the other day, and invited us to go to see her boyfriend’s band.”

“Do you want to go?”

“I mean... I don’t mind. It’s kind of weird, but if we go with friends, maybe that’ll make it more fun?”

“Sure.” Jaebum states, “Was it the photo you had taken after the game?”

“No, I posted another one of you since then.” Seulgi answers, “I posted one of the selcas you took on my phone and officially introduced you as my boyfriend on Instagram…”

“Really??” Jaebum’s heart jumps and he quickly reaches for his phone, launching the application and going to her profile. Sure enough, there was a photo he had taken on her phone after watching ‘Before Sunrise’ for the fourth time. She had left the room to get more snacks and he took the opportunity to take some surprise photos on her phone, he thought she would delete them instead of posting them. The caption was: ‘when your boyfriend takes photos on your phone…he probably doesn't expect you to post them… so here you go @imjbum’. “I’m glad it was a flattering photo and not one of the ugly ones. That also explains how people found my new account.”

“I’ll save the ugly ones as blackmail.” Seulgi teases.

“I guess I should post one of yours too?”

“You don’t have to.”

“No, I think I do! I can’t have people seeing this on your profile, and then wondering where my photos of you are.”

“You don’t mind do you?” Seulgi then asks, “I forgot how you deleted your account and then set up a new one…maybe I should have asked before posting about you.”

“It’s fine. Our classmates were bound to find it soon. If not you, someone from the basketball team would have done it.”

Jaebum had deleted his Instagram account after breaking up with Nayeon. She was a significant presence on the social media platform, and instead of going through all the photos and deleting them individually, he closed the entire account. If people really wanted to talk to him, they could do it over text or Snapchat. So he was without one for the rest of the summer, and when school started back, he re-downloaded the app and started fresh. He posted a photo of Seulgi that he had taken while they were at the museum, and hoped this wouldn’t come back to bite him in the ass later.

“Did you have fun at the museum today?” Seulgi asks as he puts his phone away.

“Yes! Did you?”

“Of course. There’s new exhibits every month, so we should go again.”

“I’d love to.”

“Should we go shopping now? What should we cook for your mom?”

“She’d eat anything, honestly… but maybe a stew?”

“You’re just saying that because that’s _your_ favorite food.”

“You caught me there.” Jaebum confesses, picking up their trash to throw away. Seulgi follows, hooking her arm through his once his hands are free.

“I am kind of in the mood for _dakbokkeumtang_ though.” She admits.

“Sounds good to me.”

They drive to the nearest Korean grocery store and begin shopping. It doesn’t take long to gather all the ingredients they will need, along with some of Yerim’s favorite jellies. Once they arrive to Jaebum’s home, they start cooking right away. “Do you always cook for your mom?” Seulgi asks as she washes her hands, and begins cutting onions, while Jaebum cleans the chicken. The recipe for the spicy braised chicken stew was pretty simple, so Seulgi had faith that she wouldn’t screw it up.

“Not always, but often. Usually when she’s had a long day, and if I didn’t have basketball.” Jaebum explains, “I cooked with her and my grandmother as a kid, mainly Korean food because that’s what I like to eat.”

“Did Nayeon ever cook with you?”

“Like once or twice…”

“Oh…” Seulgi grows quiet and it concerns Jaebum. Did that bother her?

They don’t talk much as they continue to cook, Jaebum instead putting on some music to fill the silence. It’s not until they’re done cooking, and setting the table does Seulgi speak up again. “Jaebum, how long do you think this will continue?” Hearing the question makes him panic slightly. Did he do something wrong? Did she want to end this already? “I was just thinking, we should probably revise the contract, if we’re going to keep this up.” Jaebum’s not sure if he should feel relieved or not.

“What kind of revisions?”

“You know, instead of just movie nights, we should probably make museum nights. And we should add cooking more to it. Then there’s that no kissing rule…”

“What about it?”

“I’m not saying we should start making out to convince people that we’re really in a relationship, but I think maybe a peck or two on the cheek here and there wouldn’t be so bad.”

“If you wanted to kiss me, Seulgi, all you had to do was say so.” Jaebum teases, voice deepening in an attempt to sound more alluring. She gives him a playful shove.

“I’m home!” Jabeum’s mom, Yeeun, calls out, and Seulgi stands with her back straight, fluffling her bangs to get them to sit a bit neater. “Oh! Hello, you must be Seulgi!”

“Yes, nice to meet you.”

To Seulgi, Yeeun is beautiful. She has double-eyelids, unlike Jaebum, yet their eye smile is similar. Her hair is a rich honey blonde, that compliments the tone of her skin. When Yeeun walks over, she extends her arms for a hug. “Nice to finally meet you, too! Jaebum has told me so much about you!”

“All great things, I hope.”

“Of course!”

“He’s told me great things about you, so has my father. He said you two were undergraduates together.”

“Joonmyun right? Yes, we got along great, and were in the same study group. How’s he doing?”

“Great, he owns his own pediatric practice.”

“That’s amazing! Well, let’s all wash up and dig in. You both must have worked hard.”

Dinner goes swimmingly, Yeeun asking a lot of questions, and telling embarrassing stories. They have fruit for dessert, and Yeeun offers to clean up as Jaebum takes Seulgi home. The drive is bittersweet, Jaebum wasn’t really ready to end his time with Seulgi, but there was always tomorrow. He walks her to her front door, smiling wide as she hugs him tight. “Goodnight, Seul.”

“Goodnight, JB.” This would be the perfect moment to kiss. A great ending to a great day, but Jaebum refrains himself from doing so. So he just squeezes her back before pulling away. Her smile is bright, just like her favorite color, and damn… it does things to his heart. “Text me when you get home, so I know you arrived safely.”

“Will do, get some rest.” He waits until she’s safely behind her door before heading to his car.

That night, Jaebum lies in bed rethinking their agreement for the umpteenth time. The days are flying by, and the ski trip will probably end up sneaking up on them. He vows to himself, if they’re still an item during the trip, he’ll confess his feelings and see where it takes them.

To: SseulBear 

<< might go to the skate park with the boys

<< want to come too?

From: SseulBear

>> sure

>> it's a date


	5. chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> and then there was a kiss...?

From: My Jaebongi

>> are you busy?

Seulgi read the message, and then looked around her room. She wasn't _that_ busy, just doing some art, but her hair was a mess and she was barefaced. Usually, she doesn't care much, or at all really, but she and Jaebum are entering that second month of 'dating' and she still feels like a giddy school girl who always has to look good in front of her crush.

To: My Jaebongi

<< no, not at all

The FaceTime call doesn't come as too much surprise, but it does take Seulgi a few rings to answer. When she does finally accept the call, she's propped her phone on her desk, and has put her hair in a messy bun. As the connection stabilizes, Seulgi can't help but smile. Jaebum's running his hand through his hair repeatedly, mussing it up more than fixing it. "How was your game?" she begins, "I'm sorry I couldn't make it." She wanted to be there, but Yerim caught a stomach bug and their father was too caught up at work to take her to the doctor, so Seulgi had to.

"It's fine, Seulgi. We did win, yes, and I did wish that you were there, but Yerim comes first. How is she?"

"Better, there's not really any medicine she can take for a stomach bug... she has to just let it pass. She's sleeping now, and my dad's going to stay with her tomorrow."

"I'm glad to hear that she's okay... and that you're okay too, because you actually drove somewhere!" Jaebum teases.

"Yah! I'm a careful driver!"

"A careful driver doesn't mean you're a good driver."

"Yes it does!"

"No, it doesn't. You just need more practice; I can help you."

"Aw... you're willing to get into a car with me behind the wheel?"

"Yerim has done it, so maybe I can too." Jaebum states, "Do you have any plans tomorrow?"

"Besides school? No, not really."

"Now you do, you're going to spend it with me!"

"I am?"

"Yeah, I want to buy something for Yerim, since she's not feeling well, and you can help me pick it out."

"That's really sweet of you, Jaebum."

"I've grown fond of the squirt."

They video chat for another hour, not really talking about much, but also not wanting to just end the conversation. Seulgi did show off what she was working on, and it made her happy that Jaebum liked it so much, and was so supportive.

At school the next day, Seulgi found Jaebum waiting for her at her locker. She walked over, and was immediately pulled into a hug. "Did you miss me?" She teased.

"It was kind of weird not having to pick you up this morning." Jaebum admitted, "did you drive yourself?"

"No, my dad dropped me off." Seulgi opened her locker, putting her things away. She jumped slightly, when Jaebum came up behind her, wrapping his arms around her in a back hug, resting his head on her shoulder.

"Excited for today? We can even visit that café you like for some cake and coffee."

"Are you trying to woo me, Im Jaebum?" Seulgi teases, playfully nudging him, though it only made him tighten his hold on her.

"I don't know... is it working?"

"Maybe." She flirts back, turning her head and finding him close. So close, it would take the slightest movement before she'd be kissing him. It's crazy to think how she kissed him in a panic two months ago, and now, under the pretense of dating...it's so hard to do.

"Alright, break it up!" Mark calls out, breaking up their moment, and Seulgi finds herself immediately annoyed. She was having fun, even though she was having a crisis.

"What's up, Mark?" Jaebum asks, surprising Seulgi with a quick kiss to her cheek before pulling away from her and putting some distance between them. Seulgi focused on putting her things away, keeping her blush hidden from Mark.

"I was just wondering about Brian's band gig tomorrow. Should we still go?"

"We were invited, so I think we should go. We don't have to stay the entire gig, and we can do something else after." Seulgi suggested, "Sooyoung's going to be there, and Wendy was tagging along with her, so I want to go too." she turned to Jaebum, "if you're uncomfortable with it, you don't have to go."

"I'll go." Jaebum agreed, "It can't be that bad, right?"

"Right."

After school, they head to the mall, walking hand in hand. "What to get Yerim? What to get Yerim?" Jaebum sings, as Seulgi looks through all the shops windows, waiting for something to stand out to her.

"Let's go in there." She points out an accessory shop, before dragging Jaebum towards it. There's a lot of pastels, obnoxious music, and cutesy characters. Perfect. "Maybe some headbands?" She wonders aloud, looking through the selection. She finds one with a sparkling crown and laughs, grabbing it and turning towards Jaebum. "Bend down." She requests and he does so without really thinking about it. She places it on his head, and he poses with a hand under his chin. "Such a pretty princess." She teases, taking out her phone to snap a photo of this moment.

"If you send that to anyone, you're walking home."

"I know your threats are empty and have no bite whatsoever." Seulgi informs him, removing the headband and putting it back in it's place.

"One day, I will grow immune to your charm and then what are you going to do?"

"Find new ways to get to you? Should I start calling you _oppa_?"

"You can do that anyway, I am older."

"By a month."

"So? It still counts." Jaebum replies, pinching her cheek. Seulgi turns back to the hair accessories and picks out one with a pretty red ribbon.

"She'd like this."

"Cool, let's look over here too." Jaebum tugs her towards the jewelry.

"She's expressed an interest in my many rings, so I think we should get her a few." Jaebum explains, "Maybe ones like these? That you can stack or wear alone."

"Buying my little sister a ring before you even buy me one?"

"Are couple rings still a thing?"

Seulgi nods, "Sooyoung and Sungjae have them."

Jaebum hums, and starts looking at the rings, seeing if he could find ones that match. "What about these?" Jaebum holds up a set of rings. One is a thicker band with a heart cut out, while the corresponding one has the cut out heart on a thinner band. It's simple, it's cute, it's setting off flags.

"I like it."

"Then let's get it."

They end up buying the headband, the stackable rings, a plush bear, and more of Yerim's favorite jellies, as well as the couple rings. After, they venture to Seulgi's favorite coffee shop for a snack before he'd drop her off at home.

Seulgi finds a seat out on the patio, while Jaebum orders their iced lattes and a tiramisu to share. When he comes back, Seulgi takes obligatory dessert photos. "I'm sending them to Seungwan and Sooyoung." She explains, batting Jaebum's fork away, "We have a thing."

"Where you send each other photos of your food?"

"Desserts mostly, but yes. We have a group on Snapchat, 'the dessert club'."

"How original." Jaebum laughs, and Seulgi shuts him up by feeding him the first piece. "Have you ever thought of hand modeling?"

"No," Seulgi giggles, wiping some mascarpone off his lip.

"You should look into it, you have the hands for it."

"Oh do I?" Seulgi questions, looking down at her hands.

"Yeah, there's like some people who just have really aesthetically pleasing hands... and they go into hand modeling." Jaebum explains, grabbing hold of her hand and examining it for a brief second before placing a kiss on the back of it.

"That was all just a act so you could kiss my hand, I see through your tactics."

"You caught me." Jaebum admits with a shrug. Seulgi nibbles on her bottom lip, staring at him for a second too long. "What?" She doesn't say anything, and just closes her eyes, leaning over the table and kissing his cheek quickly before sitting back and eating her dessert like nothing happened. Jaebum's smiling like a fool, and he couldn't care less. 

The next day, Seungwan comes over after school to get ready for Brian's gig together. Jaebum, along with Mark, is going to pick them up at 6:00PM. The other expressed an interest in Seungwan, and tonight would be their first night to really get together. "So... Mark, huh?" Seulgi teases, making Seungwan laugh, as they do their makeup for the night.

"Yeah, I know... me going out on a date, it's weird."

"It's not weird! I'm happy for you. Mark is nice."

"He's so nice, and sweet, and caring, and cute." Seungwan gushes. "I don't think it's anything serious, but it's a start. Just a crush for now. I'm looking forward to seeing where this goes."

"That's good to hear."

"What about you?"

"Me?"

"Yeah... I mean, how are things with you and Jaebum? Is it even... _fake_ anymore?" Seungwan's voice lowers towards the end of her question. "If it is, you two are some pretty great actors. I see the posts on social media, and then compare it to the heart eyes you two give in front of me... I'm just a little worried. I don't want you to get hurt."

"There are times when things feel a little too real... and I can't help but get wrapped up in those feelings. I'm just... taking my time. Even if this ends tomorrow, next week, months from now... I know I don't really have regrets? I'm enjoying my time with him, and... that's all I care about right now."

"Do you like him, Seul?"

Instead of answering verbally, Seulgi nods her head, cheeks tinting pink. "I do." She finally admits, "But that's not too much of a surprise right? I wrote him a love letter once. It 's not that shocking that the feelings came back when they probably never really went away."

"Have you kissed him?" Seungwan then asks, and Seulgi hides behind her hands.

"Seungwan!"

"It's a valid question!"

"Not, like... on the lips. Well, not since we've been 'dating' at least."

"Why not?"

"We just haven't! No one's made that move yet. It was in our contract to not really do it, and we're just now comfortable enough where we could probably pull it off...but I'm scared."

"Of?"

"Getting too attached, and having this go horribly wrong."

"Do you want to kiss him?"

"Yes."

"Then do it... and think of the consequences later."

"That's a bit reckless."

"Well, entering a fake relationship with him was already reckless, why not continue down the path?"

Seulgi doesn't reply for a while, "I haven't told Joohyun either."

"What??"

"I'm afraid that she'll judge, and maybe talk me out of it."

"She's probably knows now... like I mentioned earlier, it's all over your social media."

"But I'm avoiding her calls. I just wait until she calls Yerim, say hi and then claim I'm busy so I'll talk to her later. She'll be home for Christmas... and I know we'll be forced to talk about it then."

"That's before the ski trip..."

"I know... and I'm worried that either he'll be back with Nayeon by then, or Joohyun will make me feel bad about everything and I'll have to end it."

"I understand, but at the same time... your older sister shouldn't be able to dictate how you spend your life and who you spend it with."

"I know, but I want to make her proud."

"I'm sure you do," Seungwan reaches over and hugs her friend. "I'm sure everything will work out fine, Seulgi."

"I'm also still avoiding Bogeum. I know I shouldn't delay the inevitable, especially because my feelings for Jaebum at the moment are a bit stronger than my crush on Bogeum, but I'm... a coward. I don't want the confrontation."

"Baby steps. We'll take baby steps." Seungwan states. "Honestly, I think Jaebum is falling for you, just as hard. Tonight will be the ultimate test. Nayeon will be around, and if he acts differently, then maybe that'll be your cue to start toning it down and taking a step back... if he's still all about you, it'll be time to face your fears and prepare to do something about your feelings." Seungwan was forever the voice of reasoning, and Seulgi hated it. "So... when you say you haven't kissed since you've been dating..."

"I might have kissed him when he came to reject my love confession."

"How did that happen??"

"Bogeum was coming towards me, I panicked and kissed him!"

"Wow...." Seungwan nods, "Was it good?"

".....Yeah."

The ride to the venue where Brian's band was going to perform was a mellow one. Seulgi and Jaebum were content with just listening to music, while Mark and Seungwan talked a bit. The small group met up with Sooyoung and Sungjae outside once they had arrived. "We're waiting for Nayeon." Sooyoung began, "That way we can all sit together." Sooyoung was hugging Sungjae around his middle, and it made Seulgi subconsciously step closer to Jaebum. On instinct, Jaebum put his arms around her, Seulgi leaning into him.

It didn't take Nayeon long to find them, and escort them inside to a big circular table. "This is my friend Hyungjung, she goes by Seola." Nayeon introduced, "She's dating one of Brian's bandmates Jae."

"Nice to meet you," Seola greeted.

"This is my cousin Sooyoung, her boyfriend Sungjae. Then there's Mark, Wendy, Seulgi and Jaebum." Nayeon also introduced, and Seola nodded. "The performance will start soon. Brian plays bass."

"What instrument does Jae play?" Seungwan asked, to fill the silence.

"Guitar." Seola answered.

"Do you go to the same school as Brian and Jae?" Seulgi asked next while Jaebum's arm came up and wrapped around her shoulders. She leaned into him then, reaching up to hold his hand out of habit.

"Yeah! I actually introduced Nayeon to Brian." Seola shared, "Nayeon and I both part-timed at the same salon as receptionists this past summer."

"Yeah, it was a little after Jaebum and I broke up." Nayeon admitted, her eyes flickering to Seulgi and Jaebum's hands.

"Oh, wait! _This_ Jaebum is your ex?" Seola asked.

"Yeah, but it's fine. We're both seeing other people. We've moved on. Right?" Nayeon turning her attention to Jaebum's face.

"Yeah, right." he agreed.

"We're both happy, right?"

"Definitely." Jaebum smiles after placing a kiss against Seulgi's temple, causing her to blush.

"Did you two get couple rings?" Seungwan points out, taking a notice of the ring Seulgi's wearing and how it matches one of Jaebum's many.

"Yeah, we did." Seulgi answers, and Sooyoung squeals.

"We have couple rings too!" She says, proudly displaying hers and Sungjae's.

"Jae and I have matching necklaces." Seola shared, showing off the puzzle piece she had around her neck.

"That's so cute!" Seungwan gushed.

"The show's starting." Nayeon announced, and if Seulgi didn't know any better, it sounded a little sour.

Brian's band was actually pretty good. They performed a few covers as well as some original works. The lights in the venue were dim, the stage being the major source of light. Seulgi could peek Seola and Nayeon singing along to some of the lyrics. Seungwan and Mark were whispering back and forth. Sungjae was lost in the show, and Sooyoung was cuddled up to him, scrolling on her phone in typical Sooyoung fashion. Seulgi peeks up at Jaebum, from where's she's tucked into his side, and finds him looking down at her instead. "What?" she mouths, and he doesn't say anything for a bit.

"Nothing, just happy." He finally answers, "Having fun?"

"Yes, are you?"

"I always have fun with you."

"You're being cheesy." Seulgi teases, tapping Jaebum on the nose.

"Yes... I think you're rubbing off on me. I'm used to being the chic, cool, suave guy."

"I am not cheesy, Im Jaebum. Take it back." Seulgi giggles, "And you were never those things." Her eyes roam over his face, stopping on his lips. Once again, the perfect moment to kiss him, but she's too chicken to make the move. Jaebum notices her internal struggle, feels it in his own chest, and his eyes dart towards Nayeon who's sneaking glances at them. Its now or never, he thinks, and leans down, his lips connecting with Seulgi's. He tries not to think too much about how his heart flutters during it. 


	6. chapter six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Halloween arrives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i just noticed i've had this vague ass timeline throughout this story, so i'm popping in to say it's october lol. next chapter will be november, then december in eight, and drama starts... :) Also, short filler-esque update.

  
  
  


After watching the performance, they all went out for pizza. It was a little weird, Jaebum thought, hanging out in such a friendly way with his ex and her new boyfriend, but then again, it's probably weird for Nayeon too. It'll probably remain weird for a bit, but something finally clicked for Jaebum. After kissing Seulgi, he caught Nayeon smiling at him, as if she was happy for him? It was clear then, that she's truly moved on, and there's not a possibility that she would come back to him.

Jaebum's not a hundred percent over her, but he's accepting of it. It's not about him and Nayeon anymore, that chapter is officially closed. It's time for a new chapter, and this time it's about him and Seulgi.

He's about to drop Seulgi and Seungwan back off at Seulgi's place, before he and Mark head over to Jinyoung's for a boys' night. As he pulls into the driveway, he tells Mark he'll be back and walks the girls to the door. Seungwan thanks him for a ride, and disappears into the house, giving him a moment with Seulgi. "So... I'll text you later?" Seulgi begins, tucking some hair behind her ear.

"Yeah, sure."

"I had fun tonight! Seola is pretty cool, she's going to get her nails done with us tomorrow." Right, the girls are doing their own thing tomorrow. Jaebum makes mental note to remember this so he won't sulk over it later when it takes her longer to reply to his messages. "Have fun on your boys' night, doing whatever you all do."

"We sit around, play video games, eat more junk, and then work it all off tomorrow morning."

"Sounds exciting." Seulgi giggles, and Jaebum pulls her into a hug, Seulgi immediately hugging him back.

"Have a goodnight, Seulgi."

"Goodnight Jaebum." He decides to be bold again, and tips her chin upwards to give her one last kiss.

"Gross!" Mark calls out from the car, and Jaebum rolls his eyes. Seulgi squeezes him once more and then pulls away, waving goodbye before disappearing into her home.

Boys' nights are always fun, and this one came at a perfect time. Mark's bursting from the seams about how wonderful his date with Seungwan was tonight, and Jinyoung is soaking it all up, just as excited for his friend. Jaebum's happy for him too, and he hopes it shows on his face, though his mind is elsewhere. He's still going over everything that happened tonight.

He and Seulgi have officially entered new territory, ever since their first kiss that night. This is real for him now, there's no more pretending for the sake of getting back with Nayeon, because there's no more getting back with Nayeon. However, relationships aren't one-sided. This has to be real for Seulgi too, and Jaebum's not sure if that'll come if she's still avoiding the elephant in the room. She's going to have to talk to Bogeum and her older sister, and it scares him a bit.

He's emotionally invested now. He has a great time with Seulgi. It feels effortless. It feels like how all the movies and storybooks portray love to be. He wouldn't say he was in love with Seulgi, it's way too soon, but he does have feelings that can easily develop into being in love. They're young, so who knows how this will truly pan out, but for now... and for the foreseeable future, Jaebum feels they can and will have something truly great. If it was to all end, he'd be crushed, and that's something he's not ready to put himself through again.

"Yo, Jaebum!" Jinyoung calls out, catching his attention, "How was being around your ex all night?"

"Did you even notice Nayeon was there? You were practically making out with Seulgi all night." Mark teases, making Jinyoung's mouth drop.

"I was not!"

"At first, he and Nayeon exchanged some 'we've both moved on' and 'we're happy, right', and then he like didn't talk to her again."

"I feel bad you had to witness that." Jinyoung coos at Mark, "I feel bad Seulgi has to be in the middle of that. Do you still have feelings for Nayeon?"

"Well...yeah, but I do like Seulgi more."

"They have couple rings." Mark then spilled, Jinyoung cackling in response.

"You gossip more than Yerim." Jaebum whines. "Can we play some video games now?"

The boys spend hours playing each other in various video games and gorging on junk food and cup noodles, before turning in for the night.

The next morning, Jinyoung's mom made them a healthy breakfast and then they were off to the park to do some exercise. Jaebum's laughing at Jinyoung, because today is not his day and all his shots keep missing the baskets, when his phone buzzes. He looks down at it, guzzling down some water. "Amber's throwing a Halloween party this year." He announces, after reading the group text.

"Would it be lame to go as a zombie basketball team?" Mark questioned.

"Probably, but who cares. I'd be a zombie basketball player with you." Jaebum states, his phone buzzes again and he looks down to read it. "...Or maybe vampire basketball player? Seulgi wants to be a vampire."

"So you're going to be her victim?" Jinyoung teases.

"Yeah, I am." Jaebum agrees, not even ashamed.  
  
  


Amber's party is the talk of the school for weeks leading up to it. Couples are looking into matching costumes, friends try to coordinate, while singles are trying to go for memes and funny outfits. Seulgi is serious about being a vampire, drags Jaebum to the local shop for her special effects makeup and colored contacts. He's agreed to match her, going to sport a bite mark on his neck and cheap fangs. It's a cute idea, though she won't let him wear a stereotypical cape.   
  


Things have been good between them ever since their first official kiss as a couple (Jaebum totally counts when Seulgi jumped him to make Bogeum jealous but she still says it doesn't). However, they both are just ignoring the main detail of it all. They're not really an item. They're pretending.

But they're too comfortable right now. They're both in too deep to stop and it's going to leave someone hurt, and Jaebum has a hunch that he might be the one burned after this because it was his idea in the beginning after all.   
  


Every day he tells himself he should come clean, and tell Seulgi that the chase for Nayeon is over but he doesn't want this to end. He should come clean, and tell Seulgi how he feels about her, but he doesn't want to be rejected. She's a good actress, better than he'd imagine and it's killing him.

It's easier to bury it all under the metaphorical bridge than to confess. It's easier to ignore the feeling crawling up his spine that this is the calm before the storm.

So he holds her hand more, hugs her tighter, and kisses her with more passion each passing day to savor these moments before they end.   
  


The day of the party, they coordinate and dress at his home. Seulgi's cute, with her hair slicked back and the scary crimson contacts, and lips smeared with fake blood. His own hair is styled up, only one contact on, fake fangs, and a bite mark that Seulgi learned how to do from YouTube, painted onto his neck. They're straight out of a movie scene:

Extremely beautiful female vampire lures in hot jock to feed off of, injecting some of her venom, and getting him to turn slowly. At least, that's their story if anyone asks, but Jaebum doubts anyone will. It's obvious by looking at them what they are.   
  


Before they leave his home, they take a photo together, posting it to both of their Instagram feeds and then carry on. Jaebum doesn't have to drive for once, Mark doing the honors of picking them up after he picks up Seungwan. Jaebum holds the door open for Seulgi, letting her scoot in first before joining her in the backseat. He's removed his jacket, giving it to her so she could drape it over her legs for modesty in a dress that exposes too much thigh when seated. She thanks him, reaching out to hold his hand through the ride, and he responds by placing kisses on her fingertips.   
  


Mark and Wendy are matching zombies and they arrive at the party to find more zombies, witches, bumblebees and ladybugs, a cat or five, and Amber running around in a pikachu onesie. Jaebum's also sure he saw someone come as 'netflix and chill', which was so last year, but whatever.  
  


They're getting drinks when Seulgi beckons him to bend down to her level. "The last Amber party we went to we were only together for like, what, a week?" She speaks directly into his ear, giggling.   
"Yeah, crazy right?" Crazy how times have changed, how _feelings_ have changed.   
"Is Nayeon here?" Seulgi wonders and Jaebum shrugs, not bothering to tell her that he did spy Nayeon earlier dressed up as a bunny. He doesn't want to give her the impression that he wants to be here with someone else, because he doesn't.   
"Who cares? Let's just have fun tonight."  
"Okay, do you want to dance?" She asks, pointing to wear Jackson and Youngji, both dressed as clowns, are. Jaebum nods, pulling Seulgi by the hand towards the impromptu dance floor.   
  


It's not until the end of the night, after Seulgi's home and all makeup is washed off, does he check his phone and Instagram again. He discovers two things: one, Seulgi's sister Joohyun has requested to follow him and two, Nayeon's single again. He could feel the storm brewing stronger.


End file.
